SAN BERNARDINO — Indian Springs takes sole possession of first place in the Mountain Valley League with a 28-20 victory over Pacific at Indian Springs High School Friday night.
Entering Week 7, Pacific (6-1, 2-1) had been undefeated, but Indian Springs (5-2, 3-0) has had an impressive year of their own.
Pacific’s starting quarterback, Ryan Cooper, was sidelined this game after a recent surgery, according to Pirates coach Ernie Burries. Backup quarterback Darriell Williams – who hardly has any quarterback experience and normally plays wide receiver and defensive back – started tonight’s game.
“We had to go with Williams in less than a day,” Burries said. “It was short notice, so we weren’t ready for it, but I’m just happy the kids played hard and he (Williams) went out there and did his best.”
Williams completed 9 of 17 passes for 121 yards and rushed for 78 yards with two touchdowns.
Pacific running back Darron Haywood ran for 46 yards and added 65 more receiving.
Coyotes’ quarterback Nikolas Padilla completed 6 of 8 passes for 107 yards with two touchdowns.
Running back Damien Johnson had a standout game with 71 receiving yards, 50 rushing yards and two touchdowns.
The Coyotes began the scoring with a trick play during their first drive downfield.
After starting the drive on their own 36-yard line due to Pacific’s turnover on downs, on 2nd-and-2, Williams completed a screen pass to David Mancha, who threw a 28-yard touchdown pass to Andrew Ortiz, giving the Coyotes an early 7-0 lead.
Mancha finished with 36 receiving yards, 14 rushing and a touchdown.
After a missed field goal by Pacific kicker David Pineda in the second quarter, the Pirates’ defense took matters into its own hands.
On the Coyotes’ next drive, Pacific’s DJ Foley recovered a fumble and ran it home for 46 yards. But with a missed extra point, the Pirates would be down 7-6 going into halftime.
Cornerback Tyre Ty Scott intercepted two passes from Padilla in the first half, but Pacific was unable to score from either defensive takeaway.
Indian Springs received the ball in the third quarter, and a 71-yard touchdown from Johnson put the Coyotes on top 14-6.
There seemed to be miscommunication with Williams at times – leading to sacks, fumbles and missed snaps – given his inexperience at the helm.
“He played (really) well,” Burries said. “The jitters were there definitely … a lot of fumbles, a lot of dropped balls, a lot of miscues as far as him not knowing which way to go. But then, (in the) second half, we just adjusted to his skill set and allowed him to be an athlete.”
The adjustment included more quarterback runs, understandably so for a wide receiver to use his legs to his advantage.
Johnson scored his second touchdown, increasing the lead to 21-6.
In the fourth quarter, Williams completed a quarterback sneak for a 1-yard rushing touchdown, decreasing the Pirates’ deficit to eight.
But due to defensive penalties, Pacific gave Indian Springs opportunities to score with six minutes left in the game.
Darron Buffington scored a 20-yard touchdown on third-and-20, giving Pacific a comfortable 28-13 lead.
Trevor Pettigrew scored an 18-yard touchdown with 1:38 remaining, but the comeback couldn’t be completed.
“I felt like we would pull it off,” Indian Springs coach Marcus Williams said. “We just had a couple moments where we broke down…but that’s something we can get better (at), because I know in three weeks when we play these guys again, it’s going to be a dog fight.”
